Kilbourn Public Library Book Club

Our book selection for August is The Library Book by Susan Orlean. 

On the morning of April 28, 1986, a fire alarm sounded in the Los Angeles Public Library.  The fire was disastrous:  it reached 2000 degrees and burned for more than seven hours.  By the time it was extinguished, it had consumed four hundred thousand books and damaged seven hundred thousand more. 

Weaving her lifelong love of books and reading into an investigation of the fire, award-winning author Susan Orlean delivers a mesmerizing and uniquely compelling book that manages to tell the broader story of libraries and librarians in a way that has never been done before.

What has your relationship with libraries been throughout your life?

Were you at all familiar with the Los Angeles library fire?

How would you describe the fire's impact on the community?

Libraries today are more than just a building filled with books.  How has your local library evolved?

The Library Book confronts the issue of street people patronizing the library.  Is this an issue in your hometown?  How do you feel about the L.A. library's involvement, handling of the issue and the notion of inclusion?

What was you initial impression of Harry Peak?  Did it change throughout the investigation?

The Library Book chronicles the history of the Los Angeles Public Library from its origins to the present day. How were the library's ups and downs reflective of the city's ups and downs?  Are libraries a fair barometer to judge the mood of a city or a town?

Let us know what you think of The Library Book!